Scan barcode
isabezza's review against another edition
5.0
I am really surprised by the negative reviews. I am glad the book lasted longer than some people may have liked because it covered multiple elements of recovering from heartbreak and revealed the seemingly endless ups and downs of such an experience. The book was separated into prose chapters and short list-like chapters which were each full of witty remarks and popular culture references. The main character was incredibly relatable. The narrative voice was highly self-deprecating and amusing in her exposure of some of the more bizarre aspects of modern society and the things we take for granted.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, and Sexual content
charlizzzard_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Another one I found difficult to put down! Equal parts heart breaking and hilarious!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Vomit, and Alcohol
Moderate: Drug use, Medical content, and Grief
Minor: Eating disorder
standrews's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I liked it and found myself laughing out loud which is rare for a book. I just got a little annoyed at the writing sometimes as she would tell us what happened rather than writing the story of what happened if that makes sense.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder and Mental illness
lydiavsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Pretty good actually.
A very solid 3 (ish) star book, a good time, thoughtful and reflective well balanced with the humour and entertainment value. I enjoyed the very real, warts and all, main character and her messy and genuine character development and growth.
Nothing particularly to fault with it, I debated on my rating for a while: Its slightly higher than a 3 for me because I appreciate how it handled the subject of a messy woman goes to therapy (as a therapist myself) and find myself becoming quite nitpicky with these sort of plots, but there was little to nitpick here. That said, I don't think it will particularly stay with me and its not a genre that often gets high ratings from me.
Overall a good read, one I would recommend but probably quite specifically to readers who are already on the lookout for this genre of book, or for people wanting to read a good and honest breakup story.
A very solid 3 (ish) star book, a good time, thoughtful and reflective well balanced with the humour and entertainment value. I enjoyed the very real, warts and all, main character and her messy and genuine character development and growth.
Nothing particularly to fault with it, I debated on my rating for a while: Its slightly higher than a 3 for me because I appreciate how it handled the subject of a messy woman goes to therapy (as a therapist myself) and find myself becoming quite nitpicky with these sort of plots, but there was little to nitpick here. That said, I don't think it will particularly stay with me and its not a genre that often gets high ratings from me.
Overall a good read, one I would recommend but probably quite specifically to readers who are already on the lookout for this genre of book, or for people wanting to read a good and honest breakup story.
Content Warnings
Minor: Eating disorder
katherina_lei's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked this book eventually. It was good enough that I kept listening, even though I didn't love Maggie and her very self-destructive behaviors. I like the ending a lot. I thought the writing and narrating was good. I just don't know if this is my type of book. I was worried the whole time that the depictions of Maggie's behaviors, and her eating disorder specifically, were going to get more graphic, and I knew that if it got much worse I was not going to be able to finish the book. All together, these things made this a solidly 3 star read. I didn't love it, but I didn't want to stop reading it, and in the end, I liked Maggie, the characters, and the story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Fatphobia
Minor: Drug use
luciferreads230's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder
greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Drug use, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
kerryamchugh's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I don't mind unlikeable narrators but I really struggled with the self-centeredness and emotional immat rity of Maggie, the protagonist in this otherwise very funny, darkly humorous divorce novel. 2 stars rounded up to 3 for some genuinely laugh-out-loud lines scattered throughout, plus excellent narration (as always) from Julia Whelan.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder
cnannery19's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Cursing, Drug use, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Dysphoria
aseel_reads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was a relatively good slice of life, post divorce life. I think the downward spiral was super realistic and it didn't end with a perfect happy ever after, because that wasn't realistic. I do wish her PhD played a bigger role, like it is unrealistic to be like "oh she just goes to work and then comes home and be sad" like work as a PhD is not easy. I also found the pacing/split of the novel not great, like it took so long to get anywhere and then changes started happening super quick in the last hour of the audiobook. Another annoying thing amy was portrayed as one thing, being a drunk and a hater, but then does a 180 out of the blue and we have no clue as to how or when she made the changes so that was an annoying illogical part
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Vomit, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Biphobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail